After drilling a hole in a surface, the hole often needs to be cleaned in preparation for measurement, fastener installation, or other processes. During manufacture and assembly of an aircraft, thousands of holes may be drilled and cleaned. It is important to remove the particles from the hole as the particles may become a source of sparking when electrical charges are passed through a fastener installed in the hole. The particles may affect fit-up of the fastener and faying surfaces. The particles may also mix with sealants being used on the fastener and joint to cause a paste and create leak paths.
The existing hole cleaning apparatus have a difficult time effectively cleaning the holes to a consistently high standard without time consuming repetitive physical work on behalf of the mechanic. In one such existing hole cleaning process, the mechanic first inserts a bottle brush into the hole to begin cleaning the hole. The bottle brush needs to be constantly cleaned with a rag. Subsequently, the mechanic wraps multiple strips of rags around his finger and pushes his finger through the hole. Next, the mechanic wraps rags soaked in alcohol around his finger and twist his finger inside the hole, constantly wiping the inside of the hole until all particles are removed from the inside and outside surfaces of the hole. This process is time consuming, tedious with physically repetitive motions, and may lead to undesired results.
There is a need for a hole cleaning apparatus and method of use to clean a hole of a surface while avoiding one or more of the issues encountered by one or more of the current hole cleaning apparatus and methods of use.